James

James was part of the 2017 Graduate Intake, now a Junior Consultant working with one of BDP's largest clients.

What has been your greatest achievement at BDP so far?

During my first year at BDP, I had the opportunity to work with a large retail bank where I created dashboards for senior stakeholders within the bank. I was able to showcase my work to a level of stakeholder I couldn't have imagined I would be presenting to in the short time I had been with the company. The feedback I had received was positive and I felt a great sense of accomplishment in my delivery.

I also gained promotion to Junior Consultant within my first 12 months with the company!

Why did you apply to Business Data Partners (BDP)?

Whilst I was at university I was exposed to consultancy modules which pushed my interest to working within a consultancy environment. A big selling point at BDP was the opportunity to work on a variety of projects across Financial Services, Retail and Local Government in a real data driven environment.

What is the culture of BDP like?

BDP are a close-knit company where you are not an employee number but you are part of their extended family. You feel part of the company from day 1 and are embedded into the BDP culture from the outset. There is a great balance of socials including regional socials, inter-office football tournaments as well as our annual Christmas parties. BDP puts a big focus on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and have projects to take part in across the country from Movember to Bake off to Three Peaks Challenge.

What support have you received to help you progress and develop?

One of the fantastic aspects of working for BDP is the training that is offered. As a graduate you are straight out of university and given the opportunity to learn SAS programming and gain a certification after weeks of joining the company. The support we received during this time was incredible, especially for me who had never programmed before. There was also a plethora of internal training courses which cover technical, non-technical and soft skills, to develop yourself and your career.

What advice would you give to someone applying?

If you are interested in working with some of the largest Financial Services companies in the UK within a fast-paced environment with challenging projects, then BDP is for you. No day is ever the same and you get real responsibility on projects from early on in your career.